This invention relates to multi-component assemblies and in particular multi-component cable assemblies comprising one or more insulated conductors mounted on a substrate which comprises a polymeric material.
A common method of organizing insulated conductors is by forming them into flat cables, which can take several forms. In one form of flat cable a plurality of conductors are placed parallel to one another and are laminated between a pair of films which surround each conductor thereby insulating each conductor from its neighbors as well as forming the flat cable construction. Another form of flat cable, uses pre-insulated conductors bonded to a carrier film. The film is generally of a polymeric material similar to that of the insulation and in order to achieve a bond between the insulated conductors and the film, the film is often heated to about its melting point. However, with certain types of insulation, it is difficult if not impossible to secure the insulated conductor to the film without chemical pretreatment of the insulation to enhance its adhesability (for example, with polytetrafluoroethylene or polysiloxane insulated conductors). Recently, it has been realized that flat cable construction techniques could be used to organize, not just groups of single insulated conductors but also groups of multiconductor cables or mixed multiconductor and single conductor cables. It has been proposed to use, for example, such organized bundles of cables to route high fidelity sound and video signals to each seat in new generations of commercial aircraft so that each passenger can view a desired program on a personal television screen (placed, for example, in the back of the seat in front). However to facilitate attachment of multiconductor bundles to the carrier film, hitherto it has been found necessary to contain the bundle in an extruded jacket which is then secured to the carrier film. Such constructions have the disadvantage that the outer jacket adds weight to the assembly and makes the bundles and especially the flat cable construction very stiff and difficult to bend without excessive distortion or even failure of the carrier film especially when the bundle contains more than two or so individual conductors.
This application is related to copending, commonly assigned, United States application Ser. No. 07/847,558, filed Mar. 6, 1992, now U.S. Pat. No. 5,268,531, and to copending, commonly assigned, U.S. application Ser. No. 07/890,045, filed May 28, 1992, now U.S. Pat. No. 5,327,513.